Activity Guide by Chloe Gonzalez
Intern, Grinnell College Museum of Art
Look and Learn
The surrealist movement began in Europe after World War I, changing art and philosophy in dramatic ways. It was known for dream-like visual imagery. Surrealist artists tried to unlock the subconscious mind by creating vivid imagery, and activities like automatic writing, which involved writing without contemplating or thinking, or perhaps even using words.
The movement began in Europe, so many surrealist artists are from France, Spain and Germany, including Salvador Dalí and Joán Miró from Spain, Louise Bourgeois from France, and Hans Arp from Germany. The movement spread around the world, so you will also find surrealists from other countries. Frida Kahlo, a famous Mexican artist, is one of the best-known non-European surrealists. Let’s look at some surrealists in GCMoA’s collection!
This lithograph by Salvador Dalí depicts a man riding a horse in a peculiar space. Are they inside or outside? It looks like they are on a floor, but the sky is blue and it looks like there is a mountain range at the end of the floor. You can see a smaller figure in a large dress inside the stomach of the man riding a horse. The piece is collage-like in nature as the figures appear to come together inside and on top of another!
Mysterious sea-creatures float around in this print. Perhaps they are at the bottom of the sea. The piece has an ambiguous feel because of the way the floating figures are represented through positive and negative shapes. What sort of creatures are these? Can you create a story using these figures? What is the bottom figure doing? Do you have a favorite figure within the image, if so what name and superpower would you give it?
In this image, Hans Arp uses multiple continuous lines in a circular manner. Arp leaves a lot of white space and seems careful to limit the circular shapes to the lower left side of the composition. What do you think the image means? Could you sing sound you think the lines would make? Could you imagine the drawing as a map for dancing?
In this piece, the cat dominates the etching, as she lays in a jumping position. The walls within this space are distorted along with the size of the cat, providing a dream-like feel. The room gradually becomes smaller as your eyes move from the top left corner to the bottom right, and the cat’s hips seem taller than the ceiling. What do you think the cat is looking at? What do you think the cat will do next? Would you add colors to this image, or leave it in shades of grey?
This piece is quite fascinating! The two figures appear to be having a conversation. The figures are quite unrealistic, as the figure on the right appears to be a sheep-person sitting in an upright position.
Create
Using Hans Arp’s Poèmes Sans Prènoms as inspiration, draw multiple continuous lines. What happens if you try to use a circular motion, or even a zig-zag? Does your line go off the paper and find its way onto another section of the paper? You can continue by starting a new line on your paper until you are happy with your creation. Consider switching colors to add complexity! If you are doing this activity with a friend, you could switch off your papers and make shapes within and on top of each other shapes.
Consider listening to different types of music while doing this activity! Do the kinds of lines and shapes you make change when listening to jazz or pop? Electronic or soul? Classical or country?
Write
Look at Leonara Carrington’s Ased is the Lion. Create a conversation between the two figures. What are they talking about? Is their conversation serious or funny? What emotions do they express as they talk?